Sole for bowling shoe



Jan. 22, 1963 M. J. LlTAK SOLE FOR BOWLING SHOE Fileq April 5, 1961 ATTa/e/VEY 3,074,184 SOLE FOR BQWLING SHGE Martin J. Litak, 35899 Ehicago, Livonia, Mich. Filed Apr. 3, 1961, Ser. No. 109,370 3 Claims. (Cl. 36-25) This invention relates to a bowling shoe having a sole of unique configuration which will aid the bowler in the proper delivery of a bowling ball to an alley.

The position of the bowler with respect to the alley is an important factor in the proper delivery of a bowling ball to the alley. If a bowler finds that his ball is deviating from the desired point of contact with the bowling pins, he may often correct this error by shifting his position with respect to the alley immediately prior to the delivery. This adjustment is a delicate one since a small error in the bowlers stance with respect to the alley subtends a large angle at the point of impact with the bowling pins. Prior to the present invention, bowlers have endeavored to dispose their bodies at a proper angle with respect to the alley through use of their general perception of their alignment, which is highly intuitive in nature.

The present invention contemplates means for provid ing the bowler with a highly accurate method of properly aligning his body with respect to the alley prior to the delivery of the ball. This invention broadly comprises the provision of a shoe for bowlers which has a sole having the perimeter of its forward part formed by a plurality of intersecting straight lines rather than the gradual curves which characterize the outline of all previous bowling shoe soles. The pattern of these lines of termination of the sole are such as to provide the bowler with a plurality of lines indicative of the general angle of alignment of his body, which lines may be co-related with cer tain basic lines of a bowling alley in order that the bowler may change his angle of disposition with respect to the alley.

All bowling alleys are formed of a plurality of boards which run longitudinally along the alley. These boards terminate at the bowlers end of the alley with a board which extends transversely across the alley. By use of these transverse and longitudinal lines on the alley and corresponding lines on a sole formed in accordance with the present invention, the bowler may accurately align himself with respect to the alley and may shift his alignment during the delivery of successive balls in order to correct for errors at the point of delivery of the balls.

The present invention specifically contemplates a sole for a bowling shoe which terminates at its forward end in a line substantially transverse to the longitudinal axis of the shoe. It also contemplates at least one line on the side of the shoe which extends substantially parallel to the axis of the shoe and therefore transverse to the forward termination. The sole between these lines is preferably formed of at least two straight lines formed with sharp points of junction. While such lines may be formed on both of the soles of a pair of shoes, the present invention preferably contemplates only a single shoe being formed with this sole. In other respects than having a sole terminating in the particular pattern of straight lines contemplated by the present invention, the shoes with which the present invention is utilized should have all the characteristics of a bowling shoe such as a non marking heel and a sole of controlled frictional resistance with respect to the floor of the approach to the alley.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to pro vide a bowling shoe having a sole with a perimeter about its forward part formed by a plurality of straight lines, at least one of which is parallel to the longitudinal axis dfii lgifid Patented Jan. 22, 1963 of the shoe and another of which is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the shoe.

Other objects, advantages, and applications of the present invention will be made apparent by the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention. The description makes reference to the accompartying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a portion of a bowling alley indicating the manner of placement of bowling shoes embodying the invention with respect to the alley;

FIGURE 2 is a bottom view of a shoe embodying the present invention; and

FIGURE 3 is a plan view or" the shoe in FIGURE 2.

The present invention is preferably applied to a bowling shoe, generally indicated at 10, of the ordinary variety which includes an upper portion 12 formed of leather or a synthetic material having similar properties and a heel 14 of the non-marking rubber variety. The sole, generally indicated at 16, may be formed of leather or a composition material in the same manner as other shoe soles. It differs from normal shoe soles in that the portion forward of the heel terminates in a plurality of straight lines. The farthest forward line 18 extends substantially transversely to the longitudinal axis of the shoe. A pair of side lines 26 and 22 extend substantially parallel to one another and to the longitudinal axis of the shoe. One pair of lines 24 and 26 extend between the terminations of the lines 18 and 22 and another pair of lines 28 and 3t? extend between the terminations of the lines 20 and 18. To the rear of the lines 20 and 22, the sole assumes normal gradually curved configuration. FIGURE 1 illustrates a placement of a pair of soles embodying the present invention with respect to a bowling alley, generally indicated at 32, during the approaching steps of the bowler. The alley proper is formed by a plurality of longitudinal boards 34. The seams between these boards are easily visible. The portion of the alley at the bowlers end of it, 36, is characterized by a line 38 which represents the termination of the boards 34 and extends perpendicular to their length. A bowling ball as is illustrated in a representative position on the alley. The outlines of a pair of soles are illustrated in FIGURE 1 as a normal righthand shoe 42 and a shoe embodying the present inventive sole 44. It may be seen that the end 46 of the sole 44 extends parallel to the line 38. At least one other line on the sole would extend parallel to the seams between the boards 34 if the bowler determined that his ball was incorrectly placed while using this stance. At his next turn, he might place one of the lines of the sole at a slight angle with respect to the principal lines of the alley or he might align one of the immediate, nonsquare lines of a sole such as 24, 26, 28, or 30 with one of the principal lines of the alley. The use of a plurality of lines inclined with respect to one another provides the bowler with a choice of stances with respect to the alley which might be multiplied by inclining a particular line with respect to a particular alley section rather than aligning it therewith.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A shoe to be worn by a bowler, comprising an upper formed to the contour of the upper part of a foot; a sole formed of a flexible material attached to said upper and projecting beyond the upper along the greater portion of its line of engagement therewith, said sole terminating at its forward end in a line substantially perpendicular to its longitudinal axis and having a perimeter forward of its mid-section formed by a plurality of joint straight lines which include at least one line substantially parallel to its longitudinal axis: and a heel formed at the rear end of said sole, disposed in contact with said sole and adapted to elevate the rear portion of said upper.

2. A sole adapted to be joined to an upper and a heel to form a shoe for a bowler, comprising a sheet of flexible material formed generally in the shape of the horizontal projection of the upper and having a perimeter forward of its mid-section characterized by a plurality of intersecting straight lines, at least one of which is substan tially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the sole and another of which is substantially perpendicular to the iongitudinal axis of the sole.

3. A shoe to be worn by a bowler including an upper generally shaped to the contour of the upper portion of a foot and a sole generally shaped to the contour of the sole of the foot and making a line contact with the upper along at least a major portion of the contour thereof, said sole projecting beyond its line of contact with the upper and having a perimeter forward of its mid-section formed of a plurality of straight lines, the forward-most of these lines being substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the shoe and the rearward-most of these lines being substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the shoe.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 354,832 Fretz Dec. 21, 1886 1,362,157 Tvincler Dec. 14, 1920 1,580,475 Farnan Apr. 13, 1926 2,072,785 Wulfi? Mar. 2, 1937 FOREIGN PATENTS 333,275 France Sept. 17, 1902 867,745 France Sept. 1, 1941 552,654 Great Britain Apr. 19, 1943 

1. A SHOE TO BE WORN BY A BOWLER, COMPRISING AN UPPER FORMED TO THE CONTOUR OF THE UPPER PART OF A FOOT; A SOLE FORMED OF A FLEXIBLE MATERIAL ATTACHED TO SAID UPPER AND PROJECTING BEYOND THE UPPER ALONG THE GREATER PORTION OF ITS LINE OF ENGAGEMENT THEREWITH, SAID SOLE TERMINATING AT ITS FORWARD END IN A LINE SUBSTANTIALLY PERPENDICULAR TO ITS LONGITUDINAL AXIS AND HAVING A PERIMETER FORWARD OF ITS MID-SECTION FORMED BY A PLURALITY OF JOINT STRAIGHT LINES WHICH INCLUDE AT LEAST ONE LINE SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO ITS LONGITUDINAL AXIS; AND A HEEL FORMED AT THE REAR END OF SAID SOLE, DISPOSED IN CONTACT WITH SAID SOLE AND ADAPTED TO ELEVATE THE REAR PORTION OF SAID UPPER. 